HISTORY OF NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE
Naturopathic Medicine evolved during the later half of
1800s with the merger of two other alternative medical systems:
Nature Cure and Homeopathy.
Doctors using these systems found their patients got better results when the methods of
Nature Cure -- fresh air, clean water, nutritious food, sunlight, hydrotherapy, exercise --
were combined with the subtle yet highly specific energy medicines of Homeopathy. This movement
started in the European Alps, primarily in Germany, but quickly spread to America

As early as the 1850s specialized medical schools were teaching a combination of hydrotherapy,
homeopathy and nutrition. In fact, the Hygeo-Therapeutic College of New York, in the 1850s, became
the first medical school of any kind in the US to require 4 years of specialized education.

By the 1890s, it became clear that this unique combination of healing modalities needed
its own name to distinguish it from the other medical systems of the day. The
word Nature from Nature Cure was combined with -opathy from Homeopathy,
and the term Naturopathy was born.

Now, in the
21st Century, Naturopathic Medicine is the premier system of health care that combines modern,
scientific methods with traditional, natural therapeutics.

The great strength of Naturopathic medicine lies in the fact that the
therapeutic modalities utilized by
Naturopathic Doctors are steeped in hundreds, sometimes thousands of years of empirical, clinical
evidence which has documented their efficacy. To this is added the latest scientific knowledge in
areas such as Biochemistry, Nutrition, Physiology, and Botanical Medicine Pharmacology, to name just
a few. Uniting these different approaches is a Naturopathic
philosophy that respects your individuality.

The 6 Core Principles of Naturopathic MedicineTHE VITAL FORCE, YOUR LIVING ORGANIC ENERGY
Naturopathic Medicine is based on the philosophy of Vitalism: that all living beings possess an intelligent,
living energy which gives us an innate ability to heal. Naturopathic Medicine, based in European traditions, calls
this energy the Vital Force. Oriental Medicine traditions call it the Qi; Ayurvedic Medicine from India refers
to it as Prana. Every traditional culture from around the world has their own term for this phenomenon, and more
than 95 different names for the Vital Force have been recorded.
Historically, the early European roots of Vitalistic philosophy in Healing date back to around 500 B.C. in Greece,
and the system of Medicine known as Greek Medicine, of which Hippocrates, the Father of Modern Medicine, was
a practitioner. This system of medicine was heavily influenced by both Chinese Medicine and Ayurvedic Medicine.
The Term 'Vital Force' appears to have been a translation of the Terms 'Qi' and 'Prana'. We may never know how much
knowledge about Vitalism was lost during the dark ages due to the tragic ignorance that lead to the burning of most
of Europe's libraries.
Interestingly, the most advanced theories of matter and energy
in the field of Modern Physics, called Quantum Field Theories, are virtually identical to the descriptions of
Qi and Prana given in the ancient texts, many of which are thousands of years old.
The Vital Force constitutes a natural wisdom of the body which constantly works to restore
health to the human system -- in essence a living, intelligent, feedback control system. Naturopathic medicine
is designed to work with this inherent healing ability in a holistic manner to restore balance and
harmony to the whole person.

A Voice from the PastOne of the founders of Naturopathic Medicine, Dr. Benedict Lust, summarized the philosophy of Naturopathy
very succinctly in 1918:

"The natural system for curing disease is based on a return to nature in regulating the diet,
breathing, exercising, bathing and the employment of various forces to eliminate the poisonous products in
the system, and so raise the vitality of the patient to a proper standard of health."

Benedict Lust, 1918, Founder of Modern, Naturopathic Medicine

THE HOLISTIC PRINCIPLE
Naturopathic healing principles recognize that each of your parts - your body, mind, emotions and
spirit - are interconnected and constantly interact. Disharmony on any one of these levels can have adverse
effects on your body, in other words, cause disease. Likewise, the appropriate healing therapy might need to
be directed at any one or a combination of these areas. Therefore, each aspect of your makeup and
environment must be considered when evaluating your case Naturopathically.

In Naturopathic Medicine, we understand that symptoms in different organs or different parts of your body, and
seemingly unrelated illnesses or other life events from your past may play an important role in your current
condition. Naturopathic doctors use this interconnected information about you to generate a specific,
principle-based treatment plan customized for your particular needs.